Tessera Guild’s Year One Recap

Pretty much one year ago, four artists soared through the shadows and collided on a little corner of the internet called Tessera Guild. Call it luck, circumstance, or one of the four artists bugging the crap out of other three…whatever. We’ve loved every moment of our time here. We’re lifers. We’re one year and counting.

And what a first year it’s been…

When I look back (and I’m sure my fellow Guildmembers will agree) it’s clear we’ve grown up a little bit here at the Guild. Our first tenative steps into the water have become headfirst leaps. Our small portfolios have begun to flourish. I can’t honestly say it’s because of the exposure Tessera offers, but nor can I say it isn’t. The Guild is a great outlet for our new releases, but it’s also a vent in the volcanic ducts of our minds. Here we can talk about our work, our hopes, and our dreams. We can look forward to the days our articles skewer the web. It’s only a little bit of validation, but it’s a whole lot of self-expression. And self-expression is an artist’s lifeblood.

These might be the most clicked-on articles, but that doesn’t mean everything. There’s a part of writing for Tessera that doesn’t care about the clicks. Sometimes it’s not exposure we’re after; sometimes it’s about the actual writing. I mean, many of my favorite blogs appear at the bottom of the click list. I mean way down there. And that’s just fine by me.

So…what else did our first year bring us? Lots, by our reckoning. We redesigned the entire site to allow more fluid reading. We added new books, art, and free downloads. We picked up talented gamer and comic book god, Robert Jeffery II (Sounds like a king’s name, doesn’t it?) We’ve uploaded more than 160 new articles ranging from book releases, fresh Makepeace art, video games, movies, woeful life stories, sports, and even this little gem.

Whew…

So…

2014-2015?

One of our goals in Tessera’s next fiscal year is to employ at least one, possibly two new full-time bloggers. We want an article smacking the net almost every day, and some days we want two. Hell, by the time 2016 rolls around, we’d like to rival CNN for link quantity (only difference: our articles will be interesting.) By the way, if you’re an artist/blogger of any kind, send us your creds. We’d love to sign you up.

What else?

It’s safe to say our second year will be bigger than the first. We’ve got new book releases in the works (Hollow Empire Episodes 3-6, The White Effect, Nether Kingdom, Let the Bodies.) Lady Makepeace will release art both ethereal and terrifying. We’re planning podcasts, a short story anthology, video tours, and maybe even an official Tessera Guild party (if we can get everyone together at once.)

To our readers, we’d like to say thank you.

To my fellow Guildmates and contributors, I’d like to offer high-fives.

To the coming cold season, full of long nights, falling leaves, and frosted bones, I say bring it.